Slammers women bitten by Redbacks

Stand-out performances from captain Courtney Bayliss and import Brittany Hodges were not enough to get the Printsync South West Slammers women’s side their fourth win of the season, losing to the Perth Redbacks by 13 points at Belmont Oasis on Friday night.

Both Bayliss (14 points, 12 rebounds) and Hodges (23 points, 13 rebounds) recorded impressive double-doubles in the 74-61 loss.

But it was a 25-8 last quarter which cost the Slammers victory, having had the better of the Redbacks for much of the night.

The Slammers started well, scoring 26 points to 19 in the first term and looked as if they were in for a repeat performance of their Round 2 victory over the Redbacks.

The game tightened up over the next two quarters, before the Slammers tired and the Redbacks took control and steal a victory on their home court.

Rebecca Benson scored a team-high 19 points for the Redbacks, while Jessica Jakens was solid with seven points and 10 rebounds.

The statistics point to a Slammers victory, with the visitors winning both the rebound and assist counts, but they again struggled on offence, with Bayliss, Kate Fielding and Georgia Denehey all shooting at below 50 per cent from the field.

A lack of contribution from the bench hurt, with the Slammers getting no points from their reserve players, while the Redbacks had an even spread on the night.

The Slammers now have a 13-day break before taking on the Mandurah Magic on Friday, June 2.